Wrath of the Dragon Czar
Aegis of Merlin Book 5
James E Wisher
Sandhill Publishing
Copyright © 2017 by James E Wisher
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Edited by: Jannie Linn Dullard
Cover Art by: Paganus
106201703
Contents
1. Bodyguard
2. The Dragon Czar
3. The Academy
4. Unwelcome Guests
5. Attack on the Academy
6. Success and Failure
7. The Land of the Night Princes
8. A Bad Situation
9. Vampires vs. Dragons
10. Fallen Empire
11. Epilogue
Author Notes
Also by James E Wisher
About the Author
1
Bodyguard
Conryu roared down the highway on his bike, wind in his face and bugs in his teeth, and the roar of the motor in his ears. The summer sun blazed overhead and the floating island had drifted far off the coast, nothing but an unpleasant memory.
He couldn’t think of a better way to spend his second to last day of vacation. Jonny had fully recovered from his encounter with Lady Raven and was back at the military academy. Shame they couldn’t have hung out a little longer, but it wasn’t to be.
Maria and Kelsie were shopping for new shoes at the East Shore Mall. Conryu would have just as soon gone another round with one of the undead biker things. A shudder ran through him. A month had passed since the near destruction of the city at the hands of the Le Fay Society. The damage had been remarkably limited and the deaths under a hundred.
Most people considered it a miracle and a fair number of those people gave the bulk of the credit to Conryu. Better for him if they just forgot he had any part in the event, but articles kept popping up in magazines and newspapers. Since he refused to do any interviews after the debacle with Kat Gable, some of the reports simply made up details to fit their story. His mother had started a scrapbook and it was already half full.
When he spotted his exit Conryu signaled and slewed across to the off ramp. At the top he eased to a stop and checked the traffic, but found little. He’d waited until well after rush hour to take his ride. Conryu pulled onto the city street and motored downtown. He had a hankering for Giovanni’s pizza and only today and tomorrow to indulge it.
Five minutes later he parked outside the pizzeria, lowered his kickstand, and climbed off. He gave his bike an affectionate pat. “Keep an eye on the bike, Prime. I shouldn’t be long.”
Bad-natured grumbling in Infernal came from his right-side saddlebag. Prime hated being left behind, but he’d been banned from the restaurant for creeping out the customers. Conryu preferred to take him along everywhere, but he wanted pizza and some things were worth the sacrifice.
Ignoring Prime’s stream of muffled complaints, Conryu walked over to the door. The smell of pepperoni, cheese, and basil washed over him and set his mouth to watering. The other customers all looked up from their pies when he entered, but soon returned to their food. At Giovanni’s he’d never be the center of attention and that’s one reason he loved it so much.
“Conryu!” Carmine Giovanni stood behind the counter and waved at him, sending flour billowing into the air. The legendary owner of the restaurant had to be approaching eighty by now, but he showed no sign of slowing down.
“Hey, Mr. Giovanni. Can I get two slices with pepperoni and meatballs and an orange soda?”
“Coming right up. Where are the ladies?”
“Shoe shopping. I begged off.”
“Ha-ha! You think such beauties will be okay on their own?” Carmine ducked back into the kitchen and slid Conryu’s slices into the oven to heat up. “I wouldn’t dare let them out of my sight.”
Conryu pitied anyone that tried something with Maria or Kelsie, especially if he found out about it. “I think they’ll be okay. Speaking of beauties, how’s Mrs. Giovanni?”
Carmine set his slices in front of him and cracked his soda. “The knee still bothers her, but otherwise she’s fine.”
Another customer entered, distracting Carmine and letting Conryu enjoy his first bite in peace. He liked the old man, but ever since Conryu became somewhat famous Carmine felt it necessary to pay extra attention to him. It was getting tiresome.
“Excuse me.”
He turned on his stool and found two middle-aged women in beige dresses standing behind him. One of them clutched a book to her chest.
Conryu maintained a scrupulously neutral expression. “Can I help you ladies?”
The one with the book thrust it at him. “Can we have your autograph?”
Conryu gave the book’s cover a look of distaste. Merlin Reborn by Professor Angus McDoogle. His unofficial biography. If he ever got a hold of Angus, he would beat him over the head with that stupid book.
“Sure, do you have a pen?”
Of course they did. He scrawled his name across the first page and handed it back.
“Thank you so much.” They retreated to their table giggling like schoolgirls.
Conryu returned to his lunch and was halfway through the second slice when his cell rang. He dug his phone out and frowned when he saw the Department’s number on the screen. What did they want now?
“Hello?”
“Conryu,” Mr. Kane said. “I was hoping we could have a chat. Are you free this afternoon?”
“Yeah, until four, then I’ve got to help Dad with the late class.”
“That’s fine. Where are you now?”
“Having lunch.”
“Giovanni’s, huh? That’s only half a mile from the Department. Why don’t you swing by when you finish? I’ll tell my secretary to expect you.”
Conryu frowned, but couldn’t think of a good reason to refuse. “All right. What’s going on?”
“I’d prefer to discuss it in person. See you in a bit.” Mr. Kane disconnected and Conryu pocketed his phone.
Wanting to discuss it in person generally meant secret and dangerous. At least they’d let him have a month of peace before finding him another job. Conryu took a bite, but the joy was gone. He devoured the rest of his food, wiped his hands and face, and stood up.
“What do I owe you, Mr. Giovanni?”
Carmine waved his hand. “Your money’s no good here. I told you that a dozen times.”
“Okay, thanks. See you tomorrow.”
Conryu took his leave and turned toward the city center where his gut told him an unpleasant job waited.
Conryu pulled into the half-full Department parking lot and eyed the building. Sixteen stories of stone, steel, and glass with an iron pentagram hanging from the front. If not for that little decoration it wouldn’t have drawn a second look. Pickups loaded with tools crowded around the main entrance. According to Mr. Kane it would take another month to finish the repairs from their demon battle. They’d gotten the elevators working anyway.
He flipped open the saddlebag holding Prime and the scholomantic flew out. The demon book had shaped a particularly scowling face this afternoon.
“I feared I might suffocate in there,” Prime said.
“Do you even breathe? I can’t imagine where your lungs are.”
“I admit I don’t technically breathe, but that doesn’t make it any more pleasant in your smelly saddlebag. And before you make another smart remark, yes, I can smell.”
“Sorry, but you mak
e people nervous. Don’t worry, once we get back to school I won’t have to hide you since I’m a sophomore this year and can have a familiar.”
“Please don’t compare me to some minor elemental spirit.” Prime ruffled his pages. “My glory can’t be so degraded.”
“It’s a wonder you can even fit in my bag with an ego that size. Come on. Let’s go see what Mr. Kane wants.”
Prime flew along beside him as they walked toward the entrance. “Perhaps they found another container and need you to open it for them.”
“I hope so. A simple job like that and I’ll be out of here in ten minutes.”
“Will you join your females in their search for foot coverings?”
Conryu winced at Prime’s description. The scholomantic still hadn’t fully grasped his relationship with Kelsie and Maria. Sometimes Conryu didn’t fully grasp it himself, but at least they weren’t glaring at each other all the time. He’d take that as a victory and hope it lasted.
Scaffolding had been erected in the lobby and men in hardhats were busy repairing the hole in the floor. The help desk sat on the far right-hand side of the lobby out of the workers’ way. Conryu waved to the secretaries as he strode past. Everyone knew him now, so he didn’t have to stop and check in.
He wove his way past the scaffold and continued toward the elevators at the rear of the lobby. Three strides from the control panel the chime sounded and the central door opened. Out stepped Lin Chang and Terra Pane, hand in hand and grinning like two teenagers on their first date. They made an interesting pair, him in his rumpled suit and her in the gray robe of a Department wizard. They seemed happy.
“Hey, Sarge.”
Lin blinked as if just noticing him. “Conryu. What brings you by?”
Conryu shrugged. “Beats me. Mr. Kane said he wanted to talk about something. I thought maybe you could give me a hint.”
“Sorry, no clue.” Lin shrugged. “There are no emergencies in the city I’m aware of. Terra, you heard anything?”
Terra offered an enigmatic smile. “We’re going to be late for lunch. I’m sure the chief’s anxious to see you, Conryu.”
Terra led Lin out of the building, leaving Conryu to stare after them.
“That woman knows more than she’s letting on,” Prime said.
“Master of the obvious as always, Prime.” Conryu stepped into the elevator and hit the button for the top floor. At least Lin’s reassurances about no emergencies took a little of the weight off his shoulders.
The bell rang and the doors slid open. Mr. Kane’s secretary looked up from her sandwich. She was in her early forties and had just a hint of gray running through her hair. She darted a glance at Prime, but offered no other reaction to the scholomantic. He felt Prime’s disappointment through their link.
“Go on in, Conryu, he’s expecting you.”
“Thanks.”
He walked past her desk and through the door beyond. Mr. Kane’s big office was fully repaired after the demon attack. A mountain of papers had built up on his desk. They were so high Conryu could barely see the top of Mr. Kane’s bald head.
“Hey. So what did you want to talk about?”
Mr. Kane stood up and came around the desk. “That was fast. Come have a seat. Don’t mind the papers. I’m still trying to get caught up.”
Conryu sat in one of the guest chairs and Mr. Kane sat in the other. “So let’s hear it.”
Mr. Kane winced. “It’s not that bad, I promise.”
“Uh-huh.”
“What do you know about the Empire of the Dragon Czar?”
Conryu stared for a moment and gathered himself. Whatever he’d imagined the topic of conversation was going to be, that certainly wasn’t it.
“Not much beyond what we learned in school. It’s a closed-off country supposedly ruled by a half-dragon immortal. That’s all that comes to mind. What’s it got to do with me?”
“Bear with me. The czar is served by a force of fanatically loyal wizards called the White Witches. He does something to alter them and no wizard has ever left the Empire. Until now. The rebellion smuggled a young woman named Anya Kazakov out of the country to the Kingdom of the Isles. The journey was a dangerous one and neither of her companions, one of whom was her mother, made it out alive.”
“Sounds tough.”
“Yes. Well, while she was waiting at the Ministry of Magic’s headquarters in London the czar’s agents attempted to kill her, again. Several magical creatures smashed their way into the building and killed a number of Ministry employees. Anya survived, but the incident convinced her she wouldn’t be safe in the Kingdom. In exchange for some information we wanted very badly they agreed to her demand that she be sent here.”
The first glimmer of what Mr. Kane wanted came clear. “You think she’s still in danger?”
“She thinks she is and her second demand was that you serve as her bodyguard. She said if the most powerful wizard in the world can’t keep her safe, no one can.”
“Is she right?”
“I don’t know, but her conviction is sincere. The girl’s terrified.”
Conryu rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Assuming I say yes, what happens?”
Mr. Kane’s bright smile annoyed Conryu no end. “Anya will attend the academy as a freshman this year. You’ll always be close by in case something happens. Keep an eye on her, reassure her nothing will go wrong. Maybe she’ll believe it after a while.”
“How am I supposed to protect her and attend my own classes? Is she even dark aligned? If not we won’t even be on the same floor of the dorm.”
“You don’t have to be at her side every minute and the dorm arrangements are a tradition, nothing more. We can easily work around it. So are you willing?”
“She’s in real trouble?”
Mr. Kane nodded.
“All right. Where’s she staying until we leave for school? Kelsie’s camped out on my couch so she can’t stay at my place.”
“As to that, I hoped to ask Ms. Kincade to stay with us for the next two nights thus freeing up your couch.”
“Have you mentioned any of this to Mom, or Maria? Having a strange girl staying with us isn’t going to please Maria I can assure you. She’s just barely started to warm to Kelsie.”
“I’ll explain everything, don’t worry.” Mr. Kane got up and went over to his phone. “Send Ms. Kazakov up, please.”
“She’s already here?” Conryu could hardly believe it. “You assumed I’d say yes.”
“She only arrived a few hours ago. We kept her in a safe room just off the portal chamber.” Mr. Kane shrugged. “I couldn’t imagine you refusing to help a girl in trouble so I asked the Ministry to send her over. I still haven’t learned what Malice got out of them, but you can be sure it was plenty.”
Conryu grimaced at the mention of the evil old woman. Other than Kelsie, he wasn’t on good terms with the Kincade family. “Is she going on Saturday with us or Sunday with the other freshmen?”
“Saturday with you. It’ll give everyone a little extra time to settle in. I am sorry you keep getting dragged into problems not of your making, but given who and what you are you might as well get used to it.”
“I—”
Conryu fell silent when a stunning young woman walked into the room. He’d seen his share of babes, but this girl could give Heather James a run for her money. Long blond hair spilled over the shoulders of her white blouse as bright blue eyes darted around the room looking for danger. Pale skin made the circles under her eyes look even darker. And good lord what a figure. He gave a full-body shiver. He was so dead when Maria saw her.
Anya’s gaze landed on him and her worried expression vanished. She hurried over, arms open. Conryu tried to think of a polite way to avoid hugging her, but before anything came to him her arms were around him and her chest was pressed tight to his. And what a chest. He gave her a couple awkward pats on the back and hoped she’d let go before he had any excessive reaction.
Finally sh
e released him and stepped back. “Thank you so much for doing this. I’ve been scared for so long…”
Tears gathered in her eyes and Conryu shot a pleading look at Mr. Kane. He couldn’t deal with crying girls.
“Anya, I see you recognize Conryu. Not to be too crude about it, but there’s the matter of the password.”
“Yes, the password and my blood, that’s all anyone seems to care about.” She rattled off a string of numbers and letters, all signs of relief now replaced by anger the moment Mr. Kane asked about the password. “They can choke on that cursed drive for all I care.”
Mr. Kane jotted it down and nodded. “Thank you and please don’t think this is all we care about. No one wishes any harm to come to you, I promise.”
Conryu looked from the fuming girl to the awkward Mr. Kane and sighed. Prime chose that moment to fly closer and stare at Anya. She yelped and scrambled away.
“I sense nothing remarkable about this female,” Prime said. “Why all the fuss?”
“What is that thing?” Anya asked in a high, anxious voice.
“Prime, mind your manners. Anya, this is Prime, my scholomantic. He’s a demon so you’ll have to make allowances for his personality. He doesn’t have much of a filter, so whatever he thinks tends to come out. Should we grab your stuff and get out of here?”
Anya held her arms out and spun a little circle. “What you see is all I own in the whole world and this was given to me by the Ministry.”
“Won’t take you long to pack then.”
She smiled again and Conryu was nearly struck dumb. Women shouldn’t be allowed to be that hot, it wasn’t fair.
“About that.” Mr. Kane held out a credit card. “It’s pre-loaded with five hundred dollars. You should be able to get whatever you need.”
When Anya made no move to take the card, Conryu did. “Maria’s out shopping today. Could you call her and let her know what’s happening? She can better help Anya pick out what she needs than I can.”
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